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Brighton Ford to open new body shop

Noe Hernandez, Livingston Daily
Published 10:04 a.m. ET Jan. 6, 2016

Dealership invests nearly $4 million in new facility

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Jerry Stewart, Brighton Ford body shop manager looks at the large expansive new facility that will soon be home to the shop formerly located on Charles H. Orndorf Rd.(Photo: Gillis Benedict/Livingston Daily)Buy Photo

Brighton Ford is building a bigger and better body shop that, after 14 years, will bring key customer services — new and pre-owned vehicle sales, service, parts and body repair — back to one location.

"We're really excited," Brighton Ford Vice President and General Manager Todd Spitler said Monday. "We have a very large facility, almost double the one we're in now.

"This is going to be better for customers as a whole because everything we have to offer is on one campus," he added.

The new 30,000-square-foot facility is expected to open by the end of this month next to the dealership, 8240 W. Grand River Ave. in Brighton. The current body shop, on Orndorf Road since 2002, will close at around the same time.

Estimated to cost nearly $4 million to build, the new body shop has been under construction since August. Brighton Ford expects to significantly increase the number of vehicles it repairs every year. It now averages about 2,500 body repairs a year.

The dealership's 15 body shop employees, including five body technicians, two painters, a mechanic and three detailers, are expected to move into the new building by the end of this month. They repair all makes and models.

The new shop contains 25 stalls, including two for aluminum body repairs, two paint booths, a dual-stage prep area, and a 12-foot-high prep area for commercial truck repairs. LED lights and natural lighting throughout the facility should make it easier to match paints and repair.

"I love what we're doing for the community, and being a part of it is special," body shop manager Jerry Stewart said.

Darek Maybee, a body technician for the past 23 years, five with Brighton Ford, is looking forward to the move.

"It's going to be a very nice shop to do the most quality repairs," Maybee said.

Contact Livingston County business reporter Noe Hernandez at 517-552-2854 or at nhernandez@livingstondaily.com. Follow him on Twitter @sayyesnoe.